Ancient Inscription โFuels Diplomatic Tensions Between โIsrael and Turkey
Jerusalem – A centuries-old limestone inscription detailingโ the construction of a water tunnel beneath Jerusalem has ignited a diplomatic dispute between Israel and Turkey, with Israeliโ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuโ accusing Turkish President Recep Tayyip erdoฤan of refusingโ to relinquish aโฃ ancient artifact proving Jewish ties โto the city. The inscription,โข discovered in 1880 during Ottoman rule, โฃhasโ been heldโค in โคIstanbul sence its excavation.
The โขdispute centers โon the inscription’s significance as evidence ofโ a Jewish presence โคin Jerusalem dating back 2,700 years – a claim central to โฃIsrael’s โhistorical โคnarrative. Netanyahu revealed during the inauguration of anโค archaeological tunnel inโ Silwan on Monday that he attempted to secure the inscription’s return in 1998 during a meeting with then-Turkish Prime Ministerโฃ Masoud Yilmaz,โ offering a tradeโ of โOttomanโ artifactsโ held in Israeliโ museums. Yilmaz reportedly expressed concern that handing over the plate, which demonstrates Jerusalem was a Jewish city centuries ago, would incite anger withinโข a growing Islamic electorate led by Erdoฤan.
“This is our city. Mr. Erdogan,it is indeed โขnot your โcity,but our city,will always remain,” โฃNetanyahu stated. Erdoฤan responded on Wednesday, rejecting Netanyahu’s โข”attacks” and reaffirming, “We, asโค Muslims, will not retract our rights in East Jerusalem.”
The limestone plate,โค found inside the Silwan tunnel, an ancient water channel, describes how to โbuild the tunnel and was initially transferred to Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul) while Jerusalem was partโ of the Ottoman Empire.โค Israel views theโ inscription as oneโ of its most significant archaeological discoveries, โฃcomparableโข to theโ Deadโ sea manuscripts. the escalating rhetoricโฃ comes amid already โคstrained relationsโข between Israelโฃ and Turkey, exacerbated by the ongoing conflict in Gaza. The future of the inscription and its potential impact on diplomaticโฃ ties remains uncertain.